A touch module, a manufacturing method thereof and a display device are disclosed. The touch module includes peripheral leads, an insulating layer and a touch electrode layer sequentially arranged on a substrate in stacked layers. The touch electrode layer includes touch sensing electrodes and touch drive electrodes, which intersect and are insulated from each other, and connection terminal protection members. Patterns of the touch sensing electrode and the touch drive electrode cover overlapping parts of the peripheral leads electrically connected with the touch sensing electrodes and the touch drive electrodes at positions of first opening areas of the insulating layer. Patterns of the connection terminal protection members cover connection terminal parts of corresponding peripheral leads at positions of second opening areas of the insulating layer. The touch module can simplify the number of layers of the touch module, reduce the use number of masks and improve the productivity.
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1. A touch module, comprising: peripheral leads, an insulating layer and a touch electrode layer sequentially arranged on a substrate in stacked layers, wherein the touch electrode layer includes touch sensing electrodes and touch drive electrodes, which intersect and are insulated from each other, and connection terminal protection members; overlapping parts electrically connected with corresponding touch sensing electrodes or touch drive electrodes are disposed at one end of the peripheral leads, and connection terminal parts in one-to-one correspondence with the connection terminal protection members are disposed at the other end thereof; the connection terminal parts are made of a metal material, and the connection terminal protection members are made of a transparent conductive material; a pattern of the insulating layer is provided with first opening areas at positions corresponding to the overlapping parts of the peripheral leads and provided with second opening areas at positions corresponding to the connection terminal parts of the peripheral leads; patterns of the touch sensing electrode and the touch drive electrode cover the overlapping parts electrically connected with the touch sensing electrodes and the touch drive electrodes at the positions of the first opening areas; and patterns of the connection terminal parts are exposed at the second opening areas, and patterns of the connection terminal protection members cover only the corresponding connection terminal parts exposed at the second opening areas.
A touch module comprises stacked layers on a substrate: peripheral leads, an insulating layer, and a touch electrode layer. The touch electrode layer contains intersecting, insulated touch sensing and drive electrodes, and connection terminal protection members. The peripheral leads connect to the touch sensing/drive electrodes at overlapping parts and have connection terminals corresponding to the protection members. The connection terminals are metal, while the protection members are transparent conductive material. The insulating layer has openings exposing the peripheral lead overlaps (first openings) and connection terminals (second openings). The touch sensing/drive electrode patterns cover the peripheral lead overlaps at the first openings, and the connection terminal protection members cover only the exposed connection terminals at the second openings.
2. The touch module according to claim 1 , wherein each touch drive electrode includes a plurality of mutually independent touch drive sub-electrodes arranged along an extension direction of the touch drive electrode, and the touch drive sub-electrodes of the touch drive electrode are electrically connected with one another in order through bridge connectors; or each touch sensing electrode includes a plurality of mutually independent touch sensing sub-electrodes arranged along an extension direction of the touch sensing electrode, and the touch sensing sub-electrodes in the touch sensing electrode are electrically connected with one another in order through bridge connectors.
The touch module described above has touch drive electrodes, each consisting of multiple independent sub-electrodes arranged lengthwise and connected by bridge connectors. Alternatively, the touch sensing electrodes have a similar structure, with multiple independent sub-electrodes arranged lengthwise and connected by bridge connectors. These bridge connectors maintain electrical continuity across the touch electrodes despite segmentation into sub-electrodes.
3. The touch module according to claim 2 , wherein the bridge connectors and the peripheral leads are arranged in a same layer; or the bridge connectors are disposed between the substrate and a layer provided with the peripheral leads.
In the touch module with segmented electrodes and bridge connectors as described above, the bridge connectors and the peripheral leads are located in the same layer. Alternatively, the bridge connectors are positioned between the substrate and the layer containing the peripheral leads. This choice impacts the fabrication process and overall layer structure of the touch module.
4. The touch module according to claim 3 , wherein connecting parts electrically connected with corresponding touch sensing sub-electrodes or touch drive sub-electrodes are respectively disposed at both ends of the bridge connectors; the pattern of the insulating layer is provided with third opening areas at positions corresponding to the connecting parts of the bridge connectors; and patterns of the touch sensing sub-electrodes or the touch drive sub-electrodes cover the connecting parts electrically connected with the touch sensing sub-electrodes or the touch drive sub-electrodes at the positions of the third opening areas.
In the touch module with segmented electrodes, bridge connectors, and peripheral leads (either co-planar or with the bridge connectors below the peripheral leads) described above, each bridge connector has connecting parts at both ends that electrically connect to the corresponding touch sensing or drive sub-electrodes. The insulating layer has third opening areas at the positions of these connecting parts. The touch sensing or drive sub-electrode patterns cover these connecting parts at the third opening locations, establishing the electrical connection between the sub-electrodes and the bridge.
5. The touch module according to claim 2 , wherein connecting parts electrically connected with corresponding touch sensing sub-electrodes or touch drive sub-electrodes are respectively disposed at both ends of the bridge connectors; the pattern of the insulating layer is provided with third opening areas at positions corresponding to the connecting parts of the bridge connectors; and patterns of the touch sensing sub-electrodes or the touch drive sub-electrodes cover the connecting parts electrically connected with the touch sensing sub-electrodes or the touch drive sub-electrodes at the positions of the third opening areas.
In the touch module with segmented electrodes and bridge connectors as described above, each bridge connector has connecting parts at both ends that electrically connect to the corresponding touch sensing or drive sub-electrodes. The insulating layer has third opening areas at the positions of these connecting parts. The touch sensing or drive sub-electrode patterns cover these connecting parts at the third opening locations, establishing the electrical connection between the sub-electrodes and the bridge.
6. The touch module according to claim 2 , further comprising a shield layer for shielding the peripheral leads.
The touch module with peripheral leads, insulating layer, touch electrodes (sensing and driving) and connection terminal protection members also includes a shield layer. The shield layer protects the peripheral leads from electromagnetic interference.
7. The touch module according to claim 6 , wherein the shield layer is disposed between the peripheral leads and the substrate.
In the touch module with a shield layer as described above, the shield layer is positioned between the peripheral leads and the substrate. This placement provides shielding from the substrate side.
8. The touch module according to claim 1 , further comprising a shield layer for shielding the peripheral leads.
The touch module with peripheral leads, insulating layer, touch electrodes (sensing and driving) and connection terminal protection members also includes a shield layer. The shield layer protects the peripheral leads from electromagnetic interference.
9. The touch module according to claim 8 , wherein the shield layer is disposed between the peripheral leads and the substrate.
In the touch module with a shield layer as described above, the shield layer is positioned between the peripheral leads and the substrate. This placement provides shielding from the substrate side.
10. A display device, comprising the touch module according to claim 1 .
A display device incorporates the touch module with peripheral leads, insulating layer, touch electrodes, and connection terminal protection members described previously, creating a touch-sensitive display.
11. A method for manufacturing a touch module, comprising: forming patterns of peripheral leads, each of which has an overlapping part disposed at one end and a connection terminal part is disposed at the other end, on a substrate; forming a pattern of an insulating layer, provided with first opening areas at positions corresponding to the overlapping parts of the peripheral leads and provided with second opening areas at positions corresponding to the connection terminal parts of the peripheral leads, on the pattern of the peripheral lead; and forming patterns of touch sensing electrodes and touch drive electrodes, which intersect and are insulated from each other, and patterns of connection terminal protection members in one-to-one correspondence with the connection terminal parts on the pattern of the insulating layer at the same time, wherein the connection terminal parts ate made of a metal material and the connection terminal protection members are made of a transparent conductive material, the patterns of the touch sensing electrodes and the touch drive electrodes cover the overlapping parts electrically connected with the touch sensing electrodes and the touch drive electrodes at the positions of the first opening areas, patterns of the connection terminal parts are exposed at the second opening areas, and the patterns of the connection terminal protection members cover only the corresponding connection terminal parts exposed at the second opening areas.
A method for manufacturing a touch module involves: first, forming peripheral lead patterns on a substrate, each with an overlapping part at one end and a connection terminal at the other. Next, forming an insulating layer pattern with first openings over the overlapping parts of the leads, and second openings over the connection terminals. Finally, simultaneously forming touch sensing and drive electrode patterns (insulated and intersecting), and connection terminal protection member patterns (corresponding to the connection terminals). The connection terminals are metal, and the protection members are transparent conductive material. The touch electrode patterns cover the lead overlaps at the first openings, the connection terminal patterns are exposed at the second openings, and the protection member patterns cover ONLY the exposed connection terminals at the second openings.
12. The method according to claim 11 , wherein the pattern of each touch drive electrode includes patterns of a plurality of mutually independent touch drive sub-electrodes arranged along an extension direction of the touch drive electrode, and the method further comprises: forming patterns of bridge connectors for electrically connecting the touch drive sub-electrodes of the touch drive electrode; or the pattern of each touch sensing electrode includes patterns of a plurality of mutually independent touch sensing sub-electrodes arranged along an extension direction of the touch sensing electrode, and the method further comprises: forming patterns of bridge connectors for electrically connecting the touch sensing sub-electrodes of the touch sensing electrode.
In the touch module manufacturing method, each touch drive electrode pattern can be formed as multiple independent sub-electrode patterns arranged lengthwise. The method also involves forming bridge connector patterns to electrically connect the touch drive sub-electrodes. Alternatively, each touch sensing electrode can be similarly formed as multiple sub-electrode patterns connected by bridge connectors.
13. The method according to claim 12 , wherein the patterns of the bridge connectors are formed at the same time when the patterns of the peripheral leads are formed; or the patterns of the bridge connectors are formed before the patterns of the peripheral leads are formed.
In the touch module manufacturing method with segmented electrodes and bridge connectors as described above, the bridge connector patterns are formed at the same time as the peripheral lead patterns. Alternatively, the bridge connector patterns are formed before the peripheral lead patterns. The relative timing of these steps affects the layer structure.
14. The method according to claim 13 , wherein connecting parts electrically connected with corresponding touch sensing sub-electrodes or touch drive sub-electrodes are respectively disposed at both ends of the bridge connectors; the formed pattern of the insulating layer is provided with third opening areas at positions corresponding to the connecting parts of the bridge connectors; and the formed patterns of the touch sensing sub-electrodes or the touch drive sub-electrodes cover the connecting parts electrically connected with the touch sensing sub-electrodes or the touch drive sub-electrodes at the positions of the third opening areas.
In the touch module manufacturing method with segmented electrodes, bridge connectors (formed either simultaneously or before peripheral leads) as described above, connecting parts are placed at both ends of the bridge connectors to electrically connect to the sub-electrodes. The insulating layer pattern is formed with third opening areas over these connecting parts. The touch sensing or drive sub-electrode patterns are then formed to cover the connecting parts at these third opening areas, creating the electrical connection.
15. The method according to claim 12 , wherein connecting parts electrically connected with corresponding touch sensing sub-electrodes or touch drive sub-electrodes are respectively disposed at both ends of the bridge connectors; the formed pattern of the Insulating layer is provided with third opening areas at positions corresponding to the connecting parts of the bridge connectors; and the formed patterns of the touch sensing sub-electrodes or the touch drive sub-electrodes cover the connecting parts electrically connected with the touch sensing sub-electrodes or the touch drive sub-electrodes at the positions of the third opening areas.
In the touch module manufacturing method with segmented electrodes and bridge connectors, connecting parts are placed at both ends of the bridge connectors to electrically connect to the sub-electrodes. The insulating layer pattern is formed with third opening areas over these connecting parts. The touch sensing or drive sub-electrode patterns are then formed to cover the connecting parts at these third opening areas, creating the electrical connection.
16. The method according to claim 12 , further comprising: forming a pattern of a shield layer for shielding the peripheral leads.
The touch module manufacturing method with peripheral leads, insulating layer, and touch electrodes also includes forming a shield layer pattern to shield the peripheral leads.
17. The method according to claim 11 , further comprising: forming a pattern of a shield layer for shielding the peripheral leads.
The touch module manufacturing method with peripheral leads, insulating layer, and touch electrodes also includes forming a shield layer pattern to shield the peripheral leads.
18. The method according to claim 17 , wherein the pattern of the shield layer is formed on the substrate before the patterns of the peripheral leads are formed.
In the touch module manufacturing method with a shield layer as described above, the shield layer pattern is formed on the substrate before the peripheral lead patterns are formed.
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September 26, 2014
June 27, 2017
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